1. Field of the Invention
The subject invention relates to coaxial connectors and to locking mechanisms to retain counterpart jacks and plugs together.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is common in coaxial connector pairs comprised of plugs and jacks to include some kind of locking mechanism between the cooperating pairs to retain the two connectors together. One such method is the so called "Bayonet" style which includes a rotatable cap generally found on the plug which contains an axial entry slot on the inner diameter, of the rotatable cap which is continuous with a slot which extends at an acute angle relative to the transverse direction. The mating jack includes on its outer diameter a circular lug which is slidably receivable into the axial portion of the slot of the cap, whereupon the cap can be rotated and the lug is presented in the angled portion of the slot, causing the two corresponding connector parts to be brought together. Another version includes a rotatable cap similar to that described above however has a continuous thread on its internal diameter which is threadable onto associated threads on the outside diameter of the jack whereby the two connector parts can be screwed together. However in either case, these types of connectors tend to be very expensive and time consuming to manufacture.